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Wednesday, 2 April 2014

Lily Bud Workshop

With the next workshop next week, now is the time to get the prep under way. The last few days have been glorious here, and there is always the temptation to spend the days outside rather than painting in the studio. The garden has had some attention, but now I really must get on with some work.

The lily bud for this next workshop will be painted using a photograph as guidance. First, the photo has been enlarged so that the lily bud is life sized, making it easier to draw or trace. All of the focus can then turn to the mixes and washes and the techniques. Some of the students last time found it difficult to draw the subject, and as the day is more about the painting techniques, I felt a photo would be more helpful here and I quite like working from photos myself.

The finished study

Step one
Getting the drawing and composition

The colours

As before, I will create a series of colour charts, with all the mixes used in the study. In the palette I have got from left to right, Transparent Yellow, Permanent Rose, Perylene Maroon, Quinacridone Magenta, Ultramarine, Indanthrene Blue and Lemon Yellow. By completing the the study myself first, I get a better idea of how to change things or add other colours before the workshop.

The Steps

As always on hot press paper, I work with wet-on-wet washes to get the initial colour base of the flower bud in place. Dry brush techniques are used in the later stages to establish details and fine areas of tone. Using too many wet washes in the later stages can lift the carefully painted washes underneath.

Working with light washes in the early stages, establishes the colour and variation
Pink mix uses Permanent Rose and Lemon Yellow

Dropping in a mix of Indanthrene and Lemon at the tips

Pale but interesting
A light wash of Permanent Rose and Lemon Yellow to the petals.
Indanthrene Blue and Lemon Yellow is used as a mix for the stem and mid ribs.

A light shadow wash of the pink with a little Perylene Maroon
and Ultramarine was added to the right petal

Once the main washes were laid it was time to get down to the detail. Here I have used the same pink but made to a stronger mix. By continuing to lay wet-in-wet washes, I was able to gain lovely movement as the paint settled.

More of the strong pink but with a little Quinacridone Magenta
The fine detail begins to take shape.

A lilac toned 'grey' made from the pink mix with a little Indanthrene,
is used on the paler petals, and the shadows start to take their form.

The mid-ribs are accentuated with a stronger green mix of
Indanthrene, Lemon and Perylene Maroon.
And the stem gets a couple of washes.
Ultramarine and Lemon with Perylene on the stem.

The first on the leaf is added

As the lily bud was quite pale, with many neutral toned shadows on the lighter petals, greys and neutral mixes had to be mixed. For these mixes, I always find the best ones are made from the existing colours in your palette. Here I have used the pink mix again but added more blue and yellow to get a lilac toned mix for the shadows nearer the top of the petals. For shadows nearer the base, a buff coloured shadow mix made of the pink mix but with a heavier yellow tone and some maroon was used. The finished painting will be photocopied, so I have made the colours a bit stronger.

The 'buff' tone of this shadow mix is perfect for the base of the petals

Dropping in a stronger green mixed with Indanthrene Blue,
Lemon Yellow and a touch of Perylene Maroon.

While the area is still wet the paint can be pulled around
or removed with a 'just damp' brush.
Too wet a brush at this stage will unsettle the paint.

Starting the leaf with the lighter green wash
of Indanthrene and Lemon

Establish the veins using a wet-in-wet wash of the stronger mix.
Allow the paint to settle.
Again, using a damp brush to move the paint around will help achieve
the surface texture of the leaf

More strength to the shadows and the mid-rib.
here a stronger lilac shade was mixed again using the pink
but with some Quinacridone Magenta and a little Indanthrene

It's important to check your source material
regularly whilst painting.
Here I can see I need to add further shadow to the right side of the bud,
but I don't want to go too dark here.
Ultramarine added to the lilac wash makes a good blue tone
to the shadow of the whiter petals.

Remember that photos are affected by the light conditions and surrounding influences.
Here, the desk is grey but shows up as blue and the photo was taken on an overcast day.

This one might need a bit more of a tweak here and there, but for now.
A very light final yellowish wash of the buff shadow mix with a little
Transparent Yellow was added to the base of the right hand petals.

About Me

Botanical so Beautiful is the online home to my work as a botanical artist, but also reflects my love of books, architecture, nature, all things quirky and of course the arts. I am drawn to things that are fun, beautiful, and eclectic, so you never know what might turn up!

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